Klousia Reflects on Storied Coaching Career

At the age of 10, Klousia watched Wimbledon and the US Open on ABC’s “Wide World of Sports.” He noticed he possessed some of the same traits as the professional players on TV, namely speed and good hand-eye coordination. So Klousia grabbed an old, wooden racquet and some tennis balls before walking to the city park a mile and a half from his home.

One of the two courts there had a backboard wall, and Klousia went to work on it. Charlie and Joyce Kimbro, a married couple who worked as insurance agents, took notice of the young man and invited him to join in on their tennis game. They also took Klousia “under their wing,” he said, emboldening him to continue playing on his own and with them.

“They made it fun for me. And, honestly, that probably kept me playing tennis because of them,” Klousia said. “I want to encourage anybody to look for a reason to do something for a young person. It might not mean much to you, but it might mean a world of difference to that person.”

While coaching at  Missouri State, Klousia guided the Bears to 10 conference championships across three different leagues, including the Missouri Valley Conference. Klousia was named conference Coach of the Year on six occasions and wrapped up his career with a 324-271 dual meet record.

His 1979 team finished seventh in NCAA Division II, while his ’81 squad was 13th nationally. Klousia saved his best for last, though, with his 2005 team winning the conference championships and nearly knocking off a top-ranked Oklahoma State University team in the NCAA Tournament. Klousia was inducted into the Missouri State University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2008.

“I had a lot of good teams and good players,” Klousia said. “The most fun I had was when I could get my team to really buy into the fact that they were a team. That’s the good thing and bad thing about tennis is you learn to compete on your own. You’re kind of the lone ranger. When you get a college team together, it’s hard to get them to play as a team.”

Now in his 34th year at Hickory Hills, Klousia is thoroughly enjoying his role as director of tennis at the outdoor facility. Though he liked working with elite-level student-athletes at Missouri State, he said he was initially surprised by how much he also enjoyed teaching introductory tennis.

“There is nothing more fun than getting a 4- or 5-year-old out on the tennis court for the first time,” Klousia said. “I enjoy watching them try to hit a tennis ball over the net. It’s fun. It’s a blast.”

Klousia — who is married to Elizabeth and whose son, Micah, is following in dad’s footsteps by teaching tennis at IMG Academy — hasn’t set any retirement goals. He said the physicality of tennis is taking its toll, and he’s continuing to recover from a leg injury he sustained more than a year ago. Klousia has cut back some coaching hours, a challenging task because he loves being on court so much.

“I’m kind of like an old horse,” he said. “I still want to be out there. When it comes down to it — in college tennis or teaching at a country club — it comes down to relationships. I mean, man, how lucky am I that I have all these great relationships from my college players? Just yesterday a former player called me up, and we talked for an hour. It’s just awesome.

“When you teach people at a country club, you get to know their family. It’s not just teaching lessons. You’re developing relationships. I feel really blessed I get to do this.”

Other Tennis Hall of Famers in Missouri:

Other individuals and tennis programs have also been inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame:

• Jodie Adams (2004), President's Award; (2017), administrator, Springfield-Greene County Park Board.
• Tom Adams (2020), coach, player - Missouri State University, Parkview High School
• Sallie Beard (2017), administrator, Missouri Southern State University
• John Bryant (2010), coach, Southwest Baptist University
• Earl “Butch” Bucholz (1995), player
• Dwight Davis (1963), player
• Ben Loeb (2015), coach
• Rock Bridge High School Tennis Program (2019)
• Springfield-Greene County Park Board Program (2018)